Qatar to represent US interests in Afghanistan

Qatar will formally represent the US interests in Afghanistan, according to a new agreement signed by the two countries on Friday. This creates a new pathway for the United States to assist American citizens and allies left behind in America’s chaotic exit.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Qatari Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani signed an agreement, effective next month, to make Qatar's embassy in Kabul a protecting power for the US, essentially hosting many of its consular functions. 

A State Department spokesperson confirmed that at the US-Qatar Strategic Dialogue, the secretary and Qatari foreign minister signed an agreement related to Afghanistan.

Under the agreement, first reported by Reuters, the Qatari Embassy will dedicate a certain portion of its staff to lead a US special interests section.

"Qatar has long been a great friend and strong partner of the United States and our cooperation on Afghanistan reflects the depth and strength of our bilateral relationship," a spokesperson said. "We are deeply thankful for Qatar’s close coordination on Afghanistan and its extraordinary support in facilitating the transit of US citizens and their families, Embassy Kabul personnel, at-risk Afghans, and other individuals from Afghanistan through Qatar."

Under the agreement, the US would address diplomatic relations in Afghanistan in a manner similar to how it does in Iran, where the US has no embassy but instead works through Switzerland’s embassy in Tehran.

Qatar has been a key player in the US evacuation, including by hosting a site for Afghan evacuees to be vetted before arriving in the US. 

"As the first and largest transit point in the world, Qatar has been at the forefront of our efforts to relocate people from Afghanistan to safety," the spokesperson added.

Qatar has committed to continue to allow individuals who are at risk in Afghanistan because of their affiliation with the US to transit its territory on their way to resettlement elsewhere. 

The State Department spokesperson also confirmed that according to the memorandum of understanding signed between the two countries on November 12, 2021 Qatar will continue to temporarily host Special Immigrant Visa applicants and eligible family members while their applications are processed.

"In addition, Qatar signed an arrangement today signaling its intention, effective December 31, 2021 to assume the role of protecting power for US interests in Afghanistan. Thanks to our strong partnership with Qatar, we are better positioned to serve US citizens in Afghanistan, whose safety and security is our top priority," the spokesperson added.

The move comes as the US has struggled to help its citizens leave Afghanistan. 

The arrangement could also help the US issue visas or other documents to those who assisted the US during its 20-year war in the country. 

Independent analysts estimate that more than 100,000 people deemed a priority for evacuation were left behind, including activists, those who assisted the military and individuals who worked with US aid and development organizations.

The State Department has been struggling with how to address consular issues without an on-site presence in Afghanistan, as visa applications have to be signed in front of US staff. 

In lieu of directly issuing visas on the ground, some refugee groups have pressed State to get some sort of document to those who are able to travel to nearby countries, signaling that they are likely to be able to secure passage to the US

Other requirements, like biometric screening, could then take place in Qatar.

A senior US official told Reuters it was "an important signal of potential direct engagement between Washington and Kabul in the future after two decades of war." 

The US Embassy in Kabul was evacuated on August 15, this year hours after the Taliban's takeover of the Afghan capital.

Kabul airport reopens

Ariana Afghan Airlines resumed some flights in Afghanistan between Kabul and three major provincial cities on Saturday, the carrier said, after a technical team from Qatar reopened the capital's airport for aid and domestic services.

Flights between Kabul and the western city of Herat, Mazar-i Sharif in northern Afghanistan and Kandahar in the south have started, the airline said in a statement.

"Ariana Afghan Airlines is proud to resume its domestic flights," it said.

Earlier, Qatar's ambassador to Afghanistan said a technical team was able to reopen Kabul airport to receive aid, according to Qatar's Al Jazeera news channel.

The airport's runway has been repaired in cooperation with authorities in Afghanistan, the ambassador said, according to Al Jazeera, in a further small step towards a return to relative normality after the turmoil of the past three weeks.

Reopening the airport, a vital lifeline with both the outside world and across Afghanistan's mountainous territory has been a high priority for the Taliban as they seek to restore order after their lightning seizure of Kabul on 15^th August 2021.

Kabul airport had been closed since the end of the massive US-led airlift of its citizens, other Western nationals and Afghans who helped Western countries. The end of that evacuation of tens of thousands of people marked the withdrawal of the last US forces from Afghanistan after 20 years of war.

Thousands of people wanting to leave Afghanistan, fearful of life under Taliban rule, were left behind when the evacuation operation ended at the end of August.

The Taliban, the West's adversary in the two-decade war that followed the 11^th September 2001 attacks on the United States, have promised safe passage for those wanting to leave.

 

Iran announces new regional policy

From the beginning, the new Iranian government of Ayatollah Seyed Ebrahim Raisi made it clear that change in the executive branch would bring about a shift in foreign policy. 

The new Iranian foreign minister, Hossein Amir Abdollahian, indicated how this shift would play out under Ayatollah Raisi.

In his speech at the Baghdad summit, Abdollahian reiterated what his predecessor often underlined in such regional platforms that Iran wants closer cooperation with the countries of the region, especially Iran’s neighbors. 

But at the same time, he was keen to let it be known that this cooperation should be done in a new spirit, one that would respect the legitimate interests of Iran and refrain from pursuing a zero-sum game. In addition, the top Iranian diplomat made it clear that no one should seek to change the balance of power in the region by relying on outside forces. 

Underlining Iran’s support for the Iraqi efforts to create areas for cooperation and interaction among the countries of the region, Abdollahian noted, “Our region has all the religious, cultural and civilizational characteristics as well as material and spiritual capacities for regional cooperation and convergence, but unfortunately, due to foreign interventions and the dominance of security-oriented ideas, it has many problems, including war, instability and insecurity.”

In pointing to a foreign role in the region, the Iranian foreign minister put the focus on the main thrust of the Baghdad summit. The Iraqi government put much energy and effort into holding this summit to bring closer the views of stakeholders of a region suffering from political divergence and polarization. 

The Iraqis portrayed the summit as a unique platform to foster intra-regional cooperation and partnership. From their point of view, bringing together officials from rival countries would make Iraq more secure and spare it the prospect of being collateral damage for regional rivalry. 

In addition, the Iraqi government was eager to convey the message that they want, and are able, to work with all countries of the region regardless of their political standing.
 
Iran welcomed the Iraqi efforts and underlined the need to strengthen regional security through dialogue among the players in the region. “What we need today more than ever before is "sustainable regional security" with the participation of regional countries. Regional security will materialize depending on the use of economic resources to build a coalition for peace and development,” Abdollahian told the summit. 

He added, “The Islamic Republic of Iran expresses its support for the Iraqi government and people and its internal decisions including the withdrawal of foreign troops and holding early elections, and it welcomes Iraq’s constructive role in promoting a culture of dialogue and regional cooperation. Iran considers cooperation within the region as the basis for establishing stability and peace in this way. The Islamic Republic of Iran, emphasizing the important role of other countries in the region, declares its readiness to advance these goals.”

At the end of his speech, the top Iranian diplomat underlined that Iran is adopting a new approach toward the region under Ayatollah Raisi, who has reiterated more than once that Iran’s foreign policy should focus on regional cooperation particularly in economic arenas.

Abdollahian pointed to this new pivot and said, “With great pleasure, I declare, at the inauguration of Iran’s new government that our foreign policy, being ‘balanced, active and smart’, emphasizes the priority of relations with neighbors and other countries in the region, and we warmly shake hands with all neighboring and regional nations.”

Whether this new approach would lead to the normalization of ties with regional heavyweights such as Saudi Arabia remains to be seen. But it seems that there is still a long road ahead until relations are fully normalized. 

Two things happened at the Baghdad summit that dampened hopes for closer regional cooperation. First, Syria was not invited to the summit despite being a major neighbor of Iraq. Some press reports suggested the exclusion of Syria was due to foreign pressure on the Iraqi government. 

Iran objected to this exclusion both before and during the summit. “We believe that Syria, as one of Iraq’s important neighboring countries, should have been invited to this meeting, too,” said Abdollahian before leaving Tehran for Baghdad.

During the summit, Abdollahian once again alluded to Syria’s absence. “I would like to emphasize the role and support of regional nations in stabilizing and resorting security to Iraq including the friendly and brotherly country of the Syrian Arab Republic. I would like to express regret that Syria is not attending this summit,” he said. 

Second, there were no reports of a meeting between Abdollahian and his Saudi Arabian counterpart Faisal bin Farhan in Baghdad. This is while many important meetings were held on the sidelines of the summit. One such meeting was between the Emir of Qatar and the president of Egypt. Another meeting was between the Emir and the governor of Dubai, who also met with Abdollahian.

Biden sends B-52 heavy bomber over Persian Gulf

Last week, a B-52 bomber of United States Air Force flew over the Middle East, the fourth time since Joe Biden became President of the United States. Washington said the flybys were due to instability in the region, but the reference was very clearly to Iran. 

What was more unusual about these flights than the previous was that the US Central Command announced that these were accompanied by supporting aircraft from Israel, Saudi Arabia and Qatar.

Israel is a US ally and Saudi Arabia has been allegedly cooperating with Israel for years but has still not recognized it. Qatar has perhaps the closest relationship with Tehran and it is a key intermediary between Iran and the United States. If the purpose of these flights was to warn Iran; such warnings have little impact.

In a clear signal to Iran, a ‘Stratofortress bomber flew over the Persian Gulf, before the plane was spotted in Israeli airspace heading back to its base in the US. It was escorted by Israeli Air Force F-15s as it passed over Israel. It was the seventh mission into CENTCOM’s area of operation in the last four months and the second deployment of the heavy bomber since Joe Biden became president on January 20.

It is believed that the United States continues to deploy combat-ready capabilities into the US Central Command area of responsibility to deter any potential adversary, and make clear that it is ready and capable of responding to any aggression directed at its interests. Gen. Frank McKenzie, commander, US Central Command had said, “We do not seek conflict, but no one should underestimate our ability to defend our forces or to act decisively in response to any attack.”

One can recall that Iranians or their proxies have launched attacks at the US bases in Iraq. They have also damaged an Israeli merchant vessel off the Lebanese coast. The Biden administration’s pledge to revive the nuclear treaty has been rejected by Iran. Since Biden has made restoring the agreement an important objective of his presidency, Iran may feel Biden is desperate for a deal.

The flight of the B 52s didn’t matter, despite two of Iran’s greatest enemies – Israel and Saudi Arabia joining hands. Israel may be eager to strike Iran, but sees itself restrained by the United States.

Iran’s primary goals are to restore its economy and prevent an attack from the West. It can’t leave Iraq alone, nor can it abandon its allies in Yemen and elsewhere. Demonstrating real regional power is a foundation of its security. Iran knows its relative importance to the United States that gives it a sense of security.

Syria ‑ The Bitter Truth

According to an editorial published in Pakistan’s The Financial Daily, “Reports about Syria by the Western media were often said to be tinted but little was there to refute. One of the allegations is that they are not reporting what’s happening in Syria correctly because at times propaganda prevails over truth and disclosures are incomplete.”

It has also pointed, “Syrians are struggling to prevent Western conquest, exploitation, and control. They’re fighting for their lives to stay free. Followers of this policy say the issue isn’t whether Assad’s government enjoy public support or not but its sovereign independence has made it vulnerable.”

Even bigger accusations have been leveled by the Syrian authorities. They have accused regional powerhouses Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey of trying to destroy the country and vowed Sunday that they would defeat rebels who have captured large swathes of the commercial hub Aleppo.

Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem, on a visit to Iran, leveled some rare public criticism of Sunni powers in the Middle East, saying Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey are supporting a plot hatched by Israel to destroy Syria. "Israel is the mastermind of all in this crisis," Moallem told a joint news conference in Tehran with his Iranian counterpart Ali Akbar Salehi.

Syrian opposition had appealed on Sunday its foreign allies to provide with heavy weapons to fight President Bashar al-Assad's killing machine and said it would soon start talks on forming a transitional government to replace him.

"The rebels are fighting with primitive weapons. We want weapons that we can stop tanks and planes with. This is what we want," Abdelbasset Sida, head of the Syrian National Council (SNC) opposition alliance, told a news conference.

However, criticism about the SNC's legitimacy is likely to complicate its efforts to form a transitional government. It backs the Free Syrian Army rebel force, despite having not always overtly supported it in the past.

Last week, Brigadier General Manaf Tlas, one of the highest ranking defectors to flee Syria, said he would try to help unite Syria's fragmented opposition inside and outside the country in order to agree a roadmap for a power transfer.

Reportedly al Queada has joined and supporting the rebels. A question is being raised is this the same as the US supporting the Taliban when USSR attacked Afghanistan but turning hostile once the motive was achieved.

Observers say Syria was calm and peaceful until Washington imposed violence, mass killing and destruction. They say Syrian conflict isn’t an uprising, revolution or civil war but Western media orchestrated by Washington is distorting the reality.

The Financial Daily has rightly concluded, “Insurgents are fully supported by Washington proxies. Subjugating is termed liberating the oppressed. In fact they are aiming at assault if other methods fail. Opponents of Assad are being provided funds and arsenal to initiate a full scale war. This is exactly what they did in Libya.”